Budget 2026 expectations: Experts push for a housing credit passport to speed up home loan processing for homebuyers

Here’s a look at what a housing credit passport is, how feasible it may be, and what it could mean for homebuyers.

“A housing credit passport is a consent-based digital snapshot of a borrower’s financial profile, covering income, credit history, and existing loans, which lenders can access during a home loan application,” says Adhil Shetty, CEO, BankBazaar.

Over 80–85 per cent of data points used in home-loan underwriting are already digital or semi-digital. The biggest friction for first-time and middle-income buyers is often repetitive documentation, not a lack of credit appetite. Industry data shows that loan processing time can extend to 15–25 days, primarily due to repeated verification, not credit risk.

Underwriting is the process a bank uses to decide whether a borrower qualifies for a loan and on what terms. Most checks banks do are now digital. Banks pull credit reports from bureaus like CIBIL to assess repayment history and existing loans, but this is not all. They also verify income using salary slips, bank statements, tax returns and, where relevant, GST data, along with employment details.

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Some physical checks still happen, such as address or property verification, especially in cases perceived as higher risk. Together, these steps determine loan approval, the amount, and the interest rate, and typically take several weeks. A housing credit passport can speed up the process.

“A housing credit passport is increasingly feasible given how much of the home-loan underwriting process has already moved to digital systems. Across the industry, a large share of borrower data, such as credit history, banking patterns, and income indicators, is now available in structured formats,” says Vishal Valecha, COO, Easy Home Finance.

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Most banks and housing finance companies already validate similar data points independently. “The main challenges would be data freshness, consent management, and over-standardisation. Nearly 35–40 per cent of India’s home-loan borrowers are self-employed or semi-formal earners, whose income profiles don’t fit clean templates,” says Valecha.

If a credit passport becomes overly score-driven, some borrowers could face stricter terms or delayed approvals. To avoid this, lenders would need the flexibility to supplement passport data with contextual assessment rather than treating it as a rigid eligibility filter, say experts.

With most underwriting data already available in digital form, manual checks would be reduced and approval timelines would shorten. While the lender would continue to make the final credit decision, Sharma would benefit from faster clarity on eligibility, smoother coordination with the seller, and lower uncertainty throughout the home-buying process.

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Thus, a pre-verified profile could reduce manual document checks by 30–40 per cent and cut turnaround time by 40–50 per cent, particularly for salaried and formally employed households.

“For borrowers in the ₹40 lakh to ₹80 lakh range, where approval delays often create cost pressure or transaction uncertainty, faster credit decisions could materially improve the home-buying experience. Final credit decisions, however, would still remain with individual lenders,” says Valecha.

A housing credit passport may not directly lower EMIs or home prices, but its real value lies in enhancing transparency and predictability. It would give families clearer visibility on their eligibility, borrowing limits and timelines, enabling more informed decisions before committing to a property.

“Faster approvals and lower rejection risk reduce stress and transaction costs during the home-buying process. When combined with subsidies and tax incentives, the passport can enhance the overall experience, even if it does not replace affordability-focused measures,” adds Shetty.

Anagh Pal is a personal finance expert who writes on real estate, tax, insurance, mutual funds and other topics